The Balconies

Formed as a trio in Ottawa, Canada in 2007 -- and playing their first gig together in February of the following year -- the initial lineup of this propulsive indie rock act was comprised of singer and guitarist Jacquie Neville, her brother Steve on bass, and drummer Liam Jaeger. Named by a friend of the band, <a href="spotify:artist:3jzXlBF2157k4exx7idecs">Leif Vollebekk</a>, Balconies was essentially set up as a side project, with Jaeger and Jacquie Neville's main going concerns at the time being local groups For the Mathematics and Jetplanes of Abraham, respectively. The Neville siblings had also already played together in the equally intense but more laid-back Jacquie in the Kitchen. As the members of Balconies read classical music at the University of Ottawa, their occasionally raucous alt-rock benefited from the careful precision that comes from a sustained period of study in this field. Their September 2009 self-titled debut was evidence of this and helped to raise their profile on the Ottawa scene, while drawing comparisons to <a href="spotify:artist:3kdrMtLybQIl93rXJlvF3w">New Young Pony Club</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:3WaJSfKnzc65VDgmj2zU8B">Interpol</a>. A lack of funding delayed any immediate additions to their catalog over the next few years, but by 2012 they had relocated to Toronto and had begun sessions for a second album with producer Arnold Lanni, who had previously worked with the Montreal act <a href="spotify:artist:2p4FqHnazRucYQHyDCdBrJ">Simple Plan</a>. The <a href="spotify:artist:5gznATMVO85ZcLTkE9ULU7">Lenny Kravitz</a>-influenced single "Kill Count" was released in 2013, and ahead of a European tour Theo McKibbon was drafted in on drums, allowing Jaeger to move to guitar. ~ James Wilkinson, Rovi